Page 1 of Shadow Bonds

CHAPTER 1

Dark shadows blur across my vision as I struggle to pull myself from the heavy drowsiness trying to drag me under yet again.

I need to get out of here. Whereverhereis.

A memory of walking down an alleyway flashes across my mind, followed by the feeling of being watched. And then nothing but darkness.

I claw my way back to the surface of slumber once more, forcing my mind to stay awake. To try and focus on everything around me and get moving. But an invisible weight, so heavy it pins me to the ground, stops me from shifting even the slightest. I try again to move, not ready to give up but my body doesn’t move an inch, and every part of me right down to the bone is heavy and grows more numb by the minute.

I’d rather the pain than the cold numbness settling in. At least with pain, I know I have a chance at surviving.

I focus harder on the blurry deep orange, and slowly the fuzziness clears a little, revealing the source of the color.

Flames.And they’re everywhere.

They start to move closer, and the heat slowly seeps into my body, finally withdrawing the cold numbness.

I quickly regret the thought of wanting to feel pain when it hits me like a ton of bricks.

I gasp as the sharp agony shoots up and down my body, the sensation similar to being electrocuted over and over. Every nerve quickly becomes too sensitive. Too sore. Too overstimulated.

I still can’t move, my body as heavy as it was before the numbness. But I know I can’t stay here. I’m going to burn alive if I don’t get out of here soon.

As more of the blur clears, I fight and push harder against the heaviness, and my gaze spots another figure across from me, closer to the flames.

A jolt of shock rushes through me when I see who it is. But it can’t be…

I blink to clear my vision over and over, but no matter how many times I do, I still see the same thing.

Me.

My body is directly across from me. My long brown hair splayed across the ground, my brown eyes open and empty as they stare upward. My face so pale and deathly.

An icy chill crawls down my spine at the dead look inmyeyes.

She…I’mdead.

But I have to be seeing things… It’s a hallucination from the pain or concussion I must have. It has to be. I’m lying on the groundacrossfrom her, not over there.

And even though I can’t move my body, I can feel every inch of pain in it.

Maybe I’m just seeing a vision of my impending death. Something that will quickly happen if I don’t get moving soon.

I try to move again and sigh in relief when I feel something happen. But my stomach drops and swirls when the slight shift I felt turns into a tug as something drags me backward.

I open my mouth to scream, but no sound comes out. And whatever pulls me continues to tug me backward.

My fear slowly fades when I quickly realize I’m being dragged outside and away from the flames.

My gaze draws once more to the body that looks eerily similar to mine as I move further and further away from her and the raging fire.

The flames touch her still body and frozen face of horror. An expression I hope to never see on my own.

I move further away from the strange hallucination. And a soft breeze whispers across my face as I’m dragged through what must be a large hole in the building.

A few feet outside of the burning building, the ground trembles beneath me. Hands quickly slide under me, holding me tight in a run as we move farther and farther away from the destruction.

A moment later, a large boom sounds out, and most of the building explodes, collapsing in on itself.

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